In Too Deep
by razzledazzle96
Summary: No one knew Tess Tyler - not even herself. They didn't know what to expect from her, but they certainly never thought that she would hold a certain seven people against their will in an abandoned cabin. Especially since SHE was one of the hostages.
1. Welcome to My World

This was, undoubtedly, the second best day in fifteen-year-old Mitchie Torres' life. The very best day had been her first time at Camp Rock. The second was, as expected, her second summer at the place she had come to call her home away from home: the place where she fit in and truly belonged.

Her mother had become the official camp cook, so Mitchie arrived via their Barney's Burgers commercial van. Tess, of course, pulled up fashionably late, daintily stepped out of her stretch limo, and tossed her long blonde hair while peering out from behind her diamond-studded sunglasses.

However, if Mitchie had bothered to take a second glance, she would have noticed something different about Tess Tyler. Gone was her usual confident and superior attitude. In its place was an emotion close to anxiety, and it totally changed her otherwise perfect features. She also would have taken in the way Tess would nervously sneak a look at her luggage from time to time, as if she were worried that something inside of it might break…or be discovered.

But Mitchie was too busy catching up with old friends and greeting a whole boatload of new ones, trying to make Della Livingston, one of the many newcomers, feel welcome as the others had once done to her.

"Caitlyn!" she exclaimed upon seeing her best friend. After their ups and downs, the two girls had quickly formed a strong bond. "How's the music producing going?"

"Good," Caitlyn replied, her dirty blonde curls bouncing slightly as she nodded her head to the beat of a song playing from her iPod. "And how's the singing for you?"

"Awesome - I just recorded my first demo CD," said Mitchie proudly.

"So…do you want to go put your stuff up?" Caitlyn asked. A moment's pause, and Mitchie still hadn't answered. "Hey! Earth to Mitchie!" she joked.

"What? Oh, sorry. I was, um, looking for somebody." Mitchie blushed.

"Lover boy's over there. Go ahead and talk to him."

"Really? You don't mind?"

"Shane hasn't shut up about you since he got here. Believe me, you'd be doing us all a favor!"

"Thanks, Cait!" Mitchie set down her bag and walked over to say hi to her favorite cookie-cutter pop star. She tried, unsuccessfully, to sneak up on him, but upon hearing her footsteps, Shane almost immediately turned around.

"Mitchie!" he said, excitement gleaming in his eyes. How that boy still managed to send her breathless was beyond Mitchie, but those dark, chocolate brown orbs always got her good.

"Never fails! I can't believe it's been a year since I've seen you! Man - did you get taller?"

"Five nine, baby!" Shane bragged, smiling. "I've beat Jason by about an inch, not that he'd notice with his head up in the clouds. Or trees, I should say."

"And Nate?"

"Serious as ever, and still at five six. Where is my little fro-bro, anyway?" "I think he's over there, having a conversation with a _friend_," replied Mitchie, jerking a thumb in Caitlyn's direction. "They would make such a cute couple."

"Cute? No. Perfect? Yes! Maybe Caitlyn can start teasing him instead of me."

"She only does it because you drive her crazy!" she cried in her bud's defense.

"And proud of it! Come on, Mitch. Let's stop playing matchmaker and go to the orientation before it's too crowded," suggested Shane as they began to walk together.

"…And here at Camp Rock we don't say, we _sing_! So could you repeat that for me?" said the camp instructor/counselor, Dee **(AN: I guess that's her name. I couldn't quite tell! Correct me if I'm wrong)**.

Immediately, the whole group of teenagers chorused, "Hi, Dee!"

"Not bad! A little pitchy, but we can fix that! In the meanwhile, why don't you go on to the mess hall and have something to eat? I hear that the kitchen's fixing up some great burgers!"

"Ah, not more burgers! I swear, if I eat another of my dad's signature grilled Barney-burgers, I may just sweat meat juice," said Mitchie. "I'm gonna go wash up, OK? I'll meet you there."

After saying goodbye to Shane, Mitchie headed towards her new cabin to put up her special journal containing all of her ideas and songs. She quickly flipped through the book's worn pages and smiled, reminiscing over the fond and not-so-into-the-distant-past memories.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the famous Mitchie Torres, come to grace her presence at Camp Rock?" said a voice sarcastically. With a start, Mitchie immediately spun around to see a familiar face.

"What are you doing?" she asked warily. Something was very wrong. She could practically taste the suspense hanging in the atmosphere surrounding her and her visitor.

"No need to be so nosy, Mitchie. I can say hi to my friends, right?"

"Last time I checked, you weren't my friend. In fact, I thought you pretty much hated me," Mitchie replied.

"You know, you're right! But I have my reasons. You and your little friend, Caitlyn," spat Tess, "ruined everything I ever wanted. I was so close, but then you waltzed in on the scene and took it with one fell swoop! It's not fair that a newbie got _everything _within a matter of weeks! Everything!" She was almost in tears, but quickly recovered when Mitchie tried to speak.

"I'm sorry that I took that from you, but it wasn't even your to begin with -"

"Oh, but it will be. I'm not stupid, Mitchie. Did you really think that you would get away with it so easily? Did you really think that I'd just let you skip away with Shane off into the sunset? Like I didn't matter? Like I didn't even exist?" Tess questioned, a note of pain ringing through her bitter words. _"Nobody _is my friend. Not Ella, not Peggy, and certainly not Caitlyn. Not anymore. Why should _you _be friends with the whole camp, while I have no one? Why should _you_ have anyone, anyone at all?"

"I…" Mitchie truly didn't have anything to say. She was shocked into silence.

"You don't! After last year's Final Jam, while you were off celebrating with Shane and Jason and Nate and all the others, I was thinking. My own mother doesn't care about me, but both of your parents were there in the audience, cheering you on. All my friends had deserted me, only to turn to you after they stormed off and left me without a single backup singer. It didn't have to be that way. I could change everything with just one click of a button, and think nothing of it."

And, with that, Tess opened her jacket to reveal something hidden in its pocket. She pulled it out, pointed the gun straight at Mitchie's head, and placed her finger on the trigger. _"I'm _in control, Mitchie," she said, almost as if she were speaking more to herself than her hostage. "And there's nothing you can do about it."

Lunch had started twenty minutes ago, and there was still no sign of Mitchie. Shane was beginning to grow worried. It wasn't like her to say that she'd come and then just not show up. Maybe he was being paranoid, but he couldn't shake off the feeling that something was wrong. Very wrong.

"_Ring! Ring! Ring!" _His phone vibrated loudly, somehow managing to be heard over the loud chatter vibrating throughout the mess hall.

He picked up his phone and looked at the incoming text. It was from Mitchie. Shane quickly opened the little envelope and looked at the words, standing out against the stark white screen:

**Come 2 the cabin in the woods. I have something I need 2 tell u and the others. Luv, Mitchie**

Weird. Oh well - it must be important if she wanted all of them to be there.

"Guys. Mitchie wants to talk to us in that old cabin in the woods," Shane announced to the whole table.

"Why?" questioned Caitlyn who had just returned from the ridiculously long lunch line. Apparently, pie was popular among people that weren't on the math team.

"I don't know, but I guess it's important," he shrugged.

"Why can't she just tell us here?" asked Nate, always the questioner of the group.

"C'mon, Nate! Where's your sense of adventure? Let's just go. No need to have a Nate's Great Debate over a little outing," said Shane. He rose from his seat and headed towards the door. Rolling his eyes, Nate followed suit, along with Caitlyn, Jason, and Ella, the last two lagging slightly behind as Jason informed his new girlfriend on the many varieties of birds.

Shane really didn't know why Camp Rock didn't just tear down the old, abandoned cabin the woods. It was in horrible shape: covered in thick ivy and really hard to find unless you knew your way around. He supposed it was sentimental to Uncle Brown - maybe it was special back when _he _was a camper. Rumor had it that the cabin was haunted, but Shane knew than to believe ghost stories. Although Camp Rock was a camp for dancers, singers, and people who just loved music, it was a camp nevertheless, and a camp isn't a camp without campfire tales.

"Not the best day to wear ballet flats," commented Ella as she tried to avoid the leaves and brambles catching in her long, dark hair.

"It always pays to wear a comfy pair of converses," replied Shane, who was having no trouble navigating his way through the underbrush. "We're almost there, anyway. How are you holding up, Caitlyn?"

"As good as ever with you as a leader," she teased. "It's a miracle that we didn't get lost ten minutes ago."

"Hey! I take offense at that! I've been here longer than you, Miss Smarty-Pants, and after four years, I'm pretty sure I know how to follow a few mental directions."

"Just keep going, Gray," replied Caitlyn, shaking her head.

All too soon, the five friends found themselves right in front of the cabin. The door was left ajar, and Shane took it as an invitation to forge ahead. He pushed it open and stuck his head inside the dark interior.

"Mitchie?" he called. No answer. He peered inside and, finding it supposedly empty, he and the others went forward, searching for a light switch with their hands.

Once they had all stepped inside the cabin, the door swung shut behind them, entrapping them in the utter darkness.

"OK…that was creepy," said Ella. "It wasn't _that _windy outside!"

"Mitch!" Shane tried again. "Where are you?"

"No!" yelled a voice. It sounded close. "Go back, Shane! It's a trap! Tess -"

Just then, the darkness suddenly lifted, and the lights mysteriously snapped on. "So the amazing six are finally here all together. I think it's time for a little reunion. Don't you?" Standing before them was none other than Tess Tyler, a strange gleam in her eyes. In her hand was a loaded gun, trained on the five in front of her. "I suggest you don't move. If you do, it might just be your last."

"Tess? This is crazy! What are you doing?! Uncle Brown knows we're gone. He's going to come out here any minute -"

"No, he won't. No one knows you're here, Shane. I know you. You wouldn't have told anyone where you were going. Nice try, though. Sit on the floor, all of you. Now."

The gun followed them as they all carefully sat down on the dirty floor.

"Why are you doing this?" Shane asked quietly, but he was afraid that he already knew the answer. If he were correct, then they were all goners.

"You all took everything - _everything _from me. I had it all, and then sweet, perfect, shy little Mitchie came along and it was gone within a month. You broke my heart, and you don't even care," Tess replied, pain and cold steel breaking her voice with every word she spoke. "Caitlyn. You just had to pretend to be my friend, and then take _him _away from me, too!"

Caitlyn was, and not for the first time in her life, thoroughly confused. "I didn't take Shane from you! He's like my brother!"

"Not Shane, you idiot." Tess shot a glare laden with ice towards one certain Connect 3 member. "Nate."

"Me?" Nate asked, his expression matching the way Caitlyn felt: as if he'd been punched in the stomach. "But…I thought you liked Shane."

"Now. But I'm not going to go into my love history for you guys. You don't deserve to listen. All you need to know is this: no one is going to make it out of this place alive. It's totally soundproof. No one suspects or knows you're here, and if they _do _happen to find out, you'll be long dead before they even arrive. I'm calling the shots. There _are _no second chances."

"Please, Tess," said Shane. "Don't do this. This really isn't you. I _know _the _real _Tess Tyler would never go so low as to murder someone in cold blood."

"Apparently you don't know me at all." As Shane looked into the blonde's eyes, he knew that there was no hope for them. Her once bright blue eyes were cold and lifeless: devoid of spark and happiness. "But, then again, no one does. So welcome to my world, Shane. Get used to it, because this is the way it's going to be until you leave it."

**AN: **This is my first suspense story ever. Get prepared for some drama! I'm trying to make Tess's reason for going 'off the deep end' plausible, so stick with me for a second.


	2. Houston, We Have a Problem

**AN: **Houston, we have a problem. For some reason, wouldn't let me upload the document for the next chapter! I'll try to fix the problem as soon as possible. But for right now, hang on. I HAVE written the next chapter, though!


	3. Oh, Brother!

**AN: **YES! Hallelujah! FanFiction finally let me upload. *Cue thunderous applause* Here's the chapter. Hope it meets expectations! By the way, here are the character's ages as I want them to be - NOT the way they are in real life. Also, Connect 3 is the Neutral Color Clan. LOL!

Shane Gray - 17

Mitchie Torres - 15

Nate Black - 15

Caitlyn Gellar - 15

Jason White - 19

Ella Pador - 17...and a half (sorry, I just had to add that in)

Tess Tyler - 16

Nate couldn't believe what was happening. Tess Tyler was holding him and his friends hostage! He didn't even _need _to point out the numerous things wrong with that sentence.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got to go back to camp and play innocent," Tess said, smiling. Her smile was more like a grimace - sort of insane - and it scared him. "But, first, I have a little surprise."

"_Now_ what?" Shane asked angrily. Nate just looked at him, his eyes saying, _Do you _want _to get shot?!_

Tess said nothing. She just stood there, that same manic grin on her face when, all of a sudden, Nate felt a sharp pain in his neck. "Ow! What the -" Without warning, his knees suddenly gave out from under him, and, before he knew it, he had collapsed onto the floor.

"Nate!" screamed Caitlyn, rushing to his side.

"What did you do?" Shane exclaimed, dropping to his knees, too. Nate tried to say something, but his tongue felt as heavy as sandpaper in his mouth. Shane's face was becoming blurrier, and a strange blackness was pressing in on his vision. He struggled to stay awake, afraid that, if he fell asleep, he might not wake up.

Once again, Tess abstained from answering her former crush's question. "Bye for now. But don't worry - I'll be back later." And, with a little wave, she walked out the door, locking it firmly behind her.

"What the hell is going on?" Shane yelled, his temper flaring. "First she locks us in an abandoned cabin, threatens us all with a gun, and done God-knows-what to Nate!" He crossed over to the darkened windows and tried to break one of them, to no avail. He only ended up with throbbing knuckles. "And she's replaced the glass with plastic, so there's no escaping through there!"

"Shane - calm down. I know you're worried…we all are…but getting all worked up isn't going to help anybody," said Mitchie as she checked Nate's pulse. "I think she hit him with some sort of dart with a drug in it. He's definitely under some kind of sedative," she observed.

"But how? Tess didn't move a finger!" said Caitlyn.

"I have a feeling that there's more than just one person involved," Shane added darkly. "Hate to say it, but I can think of more than one person who wouldn't mind it if we were all dead."

"Who?" Ella asked, surprised.

"Some of the people I offended back when I was such a jerk, for one. Plus, we all know that Tess has got the money to pay accomplices. Who knows?" Shane shrugged. "We've got to get out of here soon before we all end up dead." He looked down at his best friend, out cold on the floor. "And…Nate won't last long without insulin."

"Insulin?" Caitlyn questioned, confused.

"You all may not know this, but he's diabetic," replied Shane, pointing to Nate's dog tag. "He has this thing called an OmniPod that will give him insulin, but it will eventually run out."

"Oh, no…" Mitchie said, one hand over her mouth. What are we going to do?"

Shane shook his head sadly. "I don't know, Mitch. The best we can, I suppose. We could try to attack Tess when she comes back."

"But…even if Tess _is _evil, we'd be the murderers if we were to kill her," protested Mitchie.

"I hope it doesn't resort to that. I don't like the idea of taking someone's life, but we've gotta do what we've gotta do. I'm not going to let her hurt you…_any _of you."

"Aw…Shane," said Mitchie in admiration. She couldn't believe how much he had change. Looking into each other's eyes, they forgot how much danger they were both in. He leaned forward, and they kissed. One second…two seconds…three seconds…

"Er, guys - not to interrupt your wonderful make-out fest, but can we please focus on the matter at hand? My boyfriend is unconscious right now and in need of medical attention! We've got to get out of here!" exclaimed Caitlyn. Blushing, the two pulled apart.

"Shane…What's wrong with Nate?" Jason asked, anxiety in his tone of voice. Shane turned towards his other band mate, surprised. He'd barely heard Jason speak since this whole ordeal had begun. Jason was sort of in shock, trying to figure out why someone would be so cruel as to lock them up.

"I don't know, Jase. We've just got to wait and see."

"He's going to be alright, though?"

"Hopefully, buddy." After a moment's pause, Shane spoke again. Jason was the worst person to see sad - it made _you _sad. "And…if we get out of here, I promise that I'll make you your birdhouse," he added. "I owe you one."

"Really?" asked Jason, his once sad face slightly lighting up.

"Of course! Heck - if we all get out of here alive, I'll buy you a birdbath, too," promised Shane. He couldn't help but smile, too - his friend's simple happiness was contagious.

"Great! I'm going to paint it blue."

"Oh…OK? You do th-" Shane stopped mid-sentence when he heard a noise outside.

"What was that?" whispered Ella, scared.

"I don't know. Listen for a second."

The footsteps were growing louder and louder. Everyone held their breath, waiting to see who would enter the cabin. They heard a key being put in the lock, and the door slowly creaked open. Then everything went dark as the lone light bulb illuminating the cabin suddenly turned off. Shane felt something hit him in the back of the head - hard. He felt pain, could still hear the voices (although they were muffled), and then…nothing.

* * * * *

"…are you alright?"

"…I'm OK. What about you?"

"…fine. I think he's waking…"

"…be quiet, or they'll hear…"

Shane slowly opened his eyes to a dim light. He tried to sit up, only to find that his hands were tied behind his back - handcuffed, by the feeling of metal chafing against his wrists.

"What happened?" he asked groggily. "Are you guys OK?"

"I think so," replied Mitchie. She was sitting a few feet away from him, also handcuffed. "We all just woke up a little while ago. Someone knocked us out, too."

"And Nate?"

She shook her head. "Still unconscious. I'm getting worried, Shane. I don't know how long _we _were unconscious, but shouldn't he be awake by now?"

"I guess it just depends on how strong that sedative was…and how he's doing in diabetic terms," said Shane. He, too, was worried about his friend. Nate was like a little brother to Shane, and he didn't know what he'd do if he lost him…_No, Shane, _he told himself. _Stop thinking that way. You're all going to be fine. _Still, he had a feeling that some of them might not make it from this experience. But, he'd try his damn best, if he had anything to say about it.

"My grandmother had diabetes, Shane. I know all too well what could - can - happen. If something bad happens, we won't be able to get him to a hospital, and Tess will probably just watch on the sidelines like the b*** she is! What if he falls into a diabetic coma? What would we do then?" asked Caitlyn, her lip slightly trembling. Although she wanted to seem tough on the inside, she was even more upset than the rest of them. It was obvious, even if she didn't know it yet, that Caitlyn loved Nate.

"It'll be alright, Caitlyn. When he wakes up, we've just gotta _keep _him awake," Shane assured her. "We can get through this, guys. We've just got to stay strong."

"How, Shane? We're trapped here! I hate to be the downer, but Tess is in total control. She's locked us up and locked us in this God-forsaken place like dogs…she has a gun and, more than likely, people to help her kill us…and Nate…Nate has a better chance than any of us of not making it out of here! So how the hell are we supposed to stay strong?" Caitlyn cried. She shut her eyes, and the tears trailed down her face.

"Caitlyn…"

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you, Shane. I'm just…I'm scared," Caitlyn admitted, getting her composure back together. "And worried. Very, very worried."

"We all are, Cait," said Mitchie. "But we definitely _will _die unless we at least try to hold on. Just be glad that we're together. I wouldn't be able to take this alone. Tess on a crazy rampage would kill me without weapons."

"Me neither," added Jason. "I miss Nate…and Haley."

"Who's Haley?" asked Shane.

"My hummingbird, of course."

"Haley the Hummingbird…? Seriously, Jase…"

"What? What's wrong with 'Haley'?"

"You _named _her Haley? That's a _human_ name, not a _bird_ name!"

"Haley _is _a person -"

"Guys, stop," spoke up Ella. She'd been silent for the last few minutes, and had become sick of riding this emotional rollercoaster. "I hate to be negative, but shouldn't we start planning our escape? Tess said she was coming back. That could be our only time to overtake her."

"Wow. For a girl who loves pink nail polish, you have some good ideas!" said Jason.

"Thanks! I also love lip gloss if it's the right shade of -"

"Guys! I…I think that Nate is waking up!" exclaimed Caitlyn. "Nate? How do you feel?"

Nate, ever so slowly, began to open his eyes. He opened his mouth to speak, but found that he couldn't. His tongue still felt strange. What in the world was going on?

"Oh my gosh! He can't talk! What are we going to do! Nate! Are you deaf? Nod yes or no -"

"Caitlyn - calm down. Maybe the drugs just had side-effects on him," said Mitchie, trying to reassure her frantic friend. She turned towards Nate and said, "No matter how sleepy you may become, you've got to stay awake, Nate. OK?"

Nate nodded to show his understanding. He knew all too well what could happen if he fell asleep. He and Mitchie had become good friends through Shane, and he didn't want to scare her, and he especially didn't want to frighten Caitlyn.

"Good," sighed Mitchie, relieved. "Now that we're all awake, we can start working on that plan to stop Tess. What can we do, though? We're all tied up, so we can't use our hands."

They all thought for a moment. The windows couldn't be broken, and neither could the door. There was no other way out of the cabin - no roof entry or chimney or _anything_. So, escaping while Tess was away wasn't really one of their options unless they planned on eating through wood.

"Wait…I've got it! We just need termites!" exclaimed Jason. "They'll eat the wood for us!"

Nate just rolled his eyes. Seeing his friend's expression, Shane said, "Um…I'm pretty sure that Nate and I agree that that plan is NOT going to work. To begin with, where would we get that many termites?"

"The forest, silly Shane! DUH!" said Jason, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Er, Jason…in case you haven't noticed, we're oh, I don't know, LOCKED inside this cabin, not to mention tied up, too! And I don't know about you, but I don't carry a termite-calling whistle around in my pocket," Shane shot back sarcastically.

Jason frowned, realizing that he didn't, either. "It was just an idea! And it would've worked, too, if termites would only answer to dog whistles. I always keep a dog whistle in my wallet. I'm just glad that I don't have a pet termite. _Haley _answers to _any _kind of whistle!"

Nate, once again, rolled his eyes, thinking, _This is going to be a LONG night._

Shane sighed and, like Nate, also rolled his eyes in exasperation and groaned. "Oh, brother…"

**AN: **Don't know how much I liked this chapter. I'm aiming for five reviews this time. C'mon, people - it's not that hard! I refuse to update until I get those five reviews.


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